The eastern coastal city of Qingdao, Shandong province has been promoting industrial transformation and fostering emerging industries powered by artificial intelligence, high-tech production, manufacturing and advanced internet-related technologies.

According to statistics from the Qingdao development and reform commission, in 2019, Qingdao's strategic emerging industries accounted for 31.8 percent of industries above the designated size, an increase of 3.1 percentage points over 2018.

A night view of Qingdao, Shandong province [Photo/dailyqd.com]

Information technology, high-end equipment, new materials, biotechnology, new energy vehicles, new energy, energy-saving and environmental protection technology, and digital and creative industries have been earmarked by the central government as key emerging industries of strategic importance in China.

Emerging industries are accelerating the city's structural transformation.

Statistics show that the added value of Qingdao's strategic emerging manufacturing industry grew by 4.6 percent last year, four percentage points higher than its industries above the designated size.

Emerging industries have also become a powerful engine driving local economic development.

Investment in strategic emerging industries accounted for 30 percent of the city's total in 2019, a year-on-year growth of 26.5 percent. Investment in high-tech manufacturing rose 26.8 percent, while investment in industrial upgrading increased by 29.7 percent, all higher than the city's fixed asset investment growth rate.

In the past year, the city's 551 large-scale strategic emerging industry projects had attracted investments exceeding 100 billion yuan ($14.15 billion).

The city is striving to become more internationally influential, following in the footsteps of major economic and entrepreneurial powerhouses like Shenzhen, and the city is committed to promoting the transformation and upgrading of the manufacturing sector, the integration of artificial intelligence with the real economy and attracting more high-tech enterprises.